Construction output in the Czech Republic fell by 2.1 pct year-on-year in July, after a revised growth of 0.9 pct in June. Production was lower in civil engineering, which is the construction of buildings, and in civil engineering, which includes the construction of roads or telecommunications and energy networks. The Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ) reported this today. Compared to June, construction output was 3.8 percent lower.
“After a promising result in June, construction output in July again fell below last year’s level, dropping by 2.1 percent year-on-year. The decline took place in both segments, with civil engineering contributing more,” said Petra Cuřínová, head of the ČSÚ’s Construction and Housing Statistics Department.
Production in civil engineering decreased by 2.5 percent year-on-year in the first month of the holiday season and by 1.3 percent in civil engineering.
Building authorities issued 6294 building permits in July, which was 9.1 percent less than in the same period last year. The indicative value of permitted constructions reached CZK 40.3 billion, up 16 per cent year-on-year.
Construction started on 2,968 flats, up 8.6 percent year-on-year. “The number of housing starts rose in July after seven months, thanks to the number of flats in apartment buildings. The starts outside the capital were mainly in the Central and South Bohemia regions. Starts of single-family houses continued to decline,” noted Drahomíra Dušková from the ČSÚ’s Construction and Housing Statistics Department. Completed flats also increased by 4.9 percent year-on-year to 2,929.
The average number of registered employees in construction companies with 50 or more employees increased by 1.7 percent year-on-year. Their average gross monthly wages rose 5.9 percent compared to July 2022.
Although the Czech construction sector grew this June after a four-month decline, analysts did not expect a further substantial recovery due to the lower number of building permits issued.
Source: ČSÚ and CTK
